During Peaceful Gatherings, the Role of Police Is Not to Silence Voices of Protest, But to Ensure Safety – Ani Samsonyan

Today, I have submitted a written appeal to the Chief of the Police of the Republic of Armenia, Colonel Vahe Ghazaryan, regarding the actions of the police during peaceful gatherings and acts of disobedience. This was stated by Ani Samsonyan, a member of the National Assembly from the ‘Enlightened Armenia’ faction, on her Facebook page.

“Starting from November 10 of this year, protests, acts of disobedience, marches, and various gatherings expressing discontent against the trilateral statement signed by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his continued tenure have been taking place in Yerevan and other communities of Armenia. Monitoring the police's work in ensuring the safe realization of citizens' rights to peaceful gatherings, we observe that police actions are becoming increasingly aggressive day by day.

In particular, I would like to draw your attention to the following violations:

• We have recorded cases of mass detentions of protest participants, which aims to obstruct the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. This practice is unacceptable and must be eliminated.
• The police are using disproportionate physical force against detainees, applied to both male and female protesters. The inappropriate treatment of protesters by the police is evidenced not only by eyewitness testimonies but also by numerous recorded media publications.
• The police do not present the legal grounds for detaining participants of gatherings. Every individual deprived of freedom has the right to know why they are being arrested or detained.
• The police detain individuals who do not violate public order without grounds.
• The police are detaining protesters based on Article 182 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Republic of Armenia, which pertains to the failure to comply with the lawful demands of a police officer or serviceman during the performance of duties related to maintaining public order and ensuring public safety. However, prior to detention, no legal demand is issued.
• We have documented instances of police obstructing and assaulting journalists. The unhindered work of journalists is guaranteed, and any encroachment on this is unacceptable.
• On December 11, the traffic police stopped participants of a motorcycle rally on a public road, detaining them and transferring their vehicles to a police-maintained area, justifying it by claiming they were stopped in a prohibited place. The actions of the traffic police served as the basis for transferring the vehicles of rally participants to a police-maintained area.
• A video exists showing a police officer instructing the driver to drive towards the protesters, indicating an intention to cause harm to their lives and health.
• Eyewitness protesters are reporting that police intentionally struck participants during detentions, which can be considered as the use of physical violence.

I must emphasize that the role of police during peaceful gatherings is not to silence a person's voice of protest but to ensure their safety, protecting their life and health. Considering the above-mentioned observations, I propose to review the operational methods of the police and conduct an internal investigation regarding all unlawful actions carried out by police officers, as well as carry out investigative actions concerning acts that contain apparent signs of a crime,” she wrote.